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In my stamp collecting hobby, I have also branched out in collecting other countries' stamps which depict scenes of Brunei.

I was very surprised when I found this stamp. And I was equally surprised when one other bidder tried to beat me to the stamp. Eventually I won, but the price was very much higher than I first thought. I have seen the Sultan Omar Ali Saifuddien Mosque has been depcited on a number of other countries' stamps. But our beloved Sultan Haji Hassanal Bolkiah as far as I know has only appeared in one country's stamp - South Korea. To see His Majesty appear on another country's stamp was a complete surprise.

I don't know much about the stamp. As far as I can tell, Liberia issued a number of stamps during the millennium and one of them is a series of Chiefs of States of the World which included His Majesty as the Prime Minister of Brunei Darussalam. I know of one other Prime Minister which was the Japanese Prime Minister which also appeared on Liberi…

I was one of a few men who attended Brunei's celebration of the International Women's Day at the UBD Chancellor's Hall last Thursday, 8th March 2012. It was focused on violence against women. One of the forum speakers translated a poem by Paulette Kelly titled "I got flowers today" which really moved me. I decided to search for the poem on the internet and apparently this is a very popular poem and featured in many websites. I thought I will post the poem here. For those of you in Brunei who needed help, our helpline for you to call is 141 and it is open 24 hours a day:-

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I GOT FLOWERS TODAY by PAULETTE KELLY

I got flowers today. It wasn't my birthday or any other special day. We had our first argument last night, And he said a lot of cruel things that really hurt me. I know he is sorry and didn't mean the things he said. Because he sent me flowers today.

I got flowers today. It wasn't our anniversary or any other special day. Last night, he threw…

Except... Ole... Ole... Ole... Ole... Brunei 2 Indonesia 0. Our young Tebuans have beaten the young Garudas! Since the tournament was organised by Brunei since 2002, this is the first time that Brunei have won the cup. It is also the first time that Brunei has been able to past the group stage. It is also the first time that Brunei has been able to go to the semi-final. It is also the first time to go to the finals.

Congratulations to the young Tebuans!

Let me also congratulate my Minister, Pehin Dato Haji Hazair for making sure that this tournament is restarted after the last one in 2007 and all the tough calls that he had to make behind the scenes. His leadership and attention to details. Round of applause please. Let me also congratulate my colleague, Dato Haji Hamid Jaafar who worked tirelessly not just to organise the tournament but also to help coach and mentor the team. Without him, the tournament would not have taken place and the team would not have been …

The Hasanal Bolkiah Trophy for Southeast Asian Youth Tournament finally had a new name to reach the Finals to be played tomorrow. Nobody can deny that the Brunei team outplayed the Myanmar team who everyone thought has been almost impossible to beat. Brunei Yakin!

I won this postcard on the ebay recently. This is probably one of my earliest dated postcard about Brunei that I currently have in my collection. And unlike the others which are photographs with stamps, this particular postcard is a confirmed postcard.

What's amazing about it, it is about 100 years old. The card is postmarked year 1915 but if you look at the content of the postcard, the writer used the year of 1913. It is most likely that the postcard was written around 1913 and posted in 1915. There is also a possibility that the card itself is older than 1913.

This postcard would be making its appearance on the cover of my fourth book which hopefully will be out by the middle of this year.

There are two intriguing things about this postcard. One is the Brunei family or group of people - who are they? Which kampong was this taken? Secondly, when you read the content, the writer noted that this is one of 4 postcards that he was sending - what and where are the other three? …

Congratulations to our Tebuan Muda team for beating Timor Leste last night and being able to reach the semi finals of the tournament for the first time since the tournament began 10 years ago in 2002. We are proud of you!!!

Driving down the road from Jerudong
Don't just stop when you reach Tutong.
With a little bit of luck you might
Make it all the way to Kuala Belait.

...I'm going back to KB, baby.
...That's where I want to be,
...Where the teapot sits on the roundabout
...And the donkey nods at me.

In the middle of the city we've got Jalan Pretty.
That's where all the action is at night.
You can have a lot of fun in Bandar Sri Begawan
But you can't beat Kuala Belait.

...I'm going back to KB, baby.
...That's where I want to be,
...Where the teapot sits on the roundabout
...And the donkey nods at me.
...Bandar Seri Begawan
...Is not the place for everyone.
...'Cause I love - that's right -
...I love Kuala Belait.

This city is expanding at a furious pace.
New buildings going up all over the place
The High Court will open - one of these days.
(Spoken: Well ... it might.)